


The best things come in threes

by fanetjuh



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-25
Updated: 2018-08-25
Packaged: 2019-07-02 12:30:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15796572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fanetjuh/pseuds/fanetjuh
Summary: When Jon and Theon arrived at the Night's Watch, Jon quickly climbed the ladder while Theon struggled with himself and who he had to be. But then Theon discovers that Jon and Sam share some interesting secrets...





	The best things come in threes

**Author's Note:**

> This is written for the lovely Molly, who has been nothing but patient and gentle towards me!

“Come on, Theon. You can do better.” Jon raised his voice and Theon hissed between his teeth, making sure Jon wouldn’t hear him.

When he had decided to accompany Jon to join the Night’s Watch, he had not expected Jon to climb up the ladder that fast. His entire life he had known one thing for sure. Maybe he was a scoundrel and a prisoner, but Jon was a bastard and that was much much worse. 

But it seemed that here in the Night’s Watch it really didn’t matter who you were in the rest of Westeros. No one cared if you were a bastard, an iron born prisoner, an overweight book-reader, a thief or a murderer. 

And although that had been exactly what Theon had been looking for, it also made him a little uneasy. 

In a weird way it had always been easy to be the iron born son raised by Ned Stark among his boys. In a weird way it had always been easy to know, in the back of his mind, that he was a prisoner, a price his father had paid for a war and fight he had lost. In a weird way it had always been easy to know that he had nothing to prove and no one to be. There had been no expectations. And therefore there had been no disappointment either.

“Theon…” Jon appeared next to him and he wrapped an arm around Theon’s shoulders. “Did you forget everything you’ve learned on our way here?”

“Jon…” Samwell Tarly licked his lips and tapped on Jon’s shoulders. In the normal world of Westeros he was a nobody and the first few moments he had been here it had seemed he would become another nobody here. He lacked the talent to do anything. He couldn’t sword fight, he couldn’t run, he missed courage and determination. But for some reason Jon had liked him and now no one dared to do or say anything anymore. 

“Not now, Sam.” Jon barely looked over his shoulder, but Sam didn’t give up this easily. 

“It's urgent.” He swallowed and he nervously shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He was constantly nervous. He was nervous to not say something. He was nervous to say something. 

“What can be more urgent than making sure that you are ready when the wall is attacked by Wildlings?” Jon turned around and when his glance met Sam’s Theon saw how instructor Jon Snow disappeared and the actually charming guy Jon Snow returned. “I know I’m hard on all of you, but…” He looked around and Theon straightened his back when Jon faced him again. “We're gonna do this. We’re gonna make this. We’re gonna survive this. All of us.” Jon looked more like a commander than a soldier and Theon couldn’t keep himself from staring at him. 

“I know.” Sam nodded. “But, wouldn’t it be impossible to teach us everything in just one day? I mean, we’re here with a reason, Jon, and for the most of us that’s not because we’re well trained, well raised or good at anything.” 

Theon furrowed his eyebrows. 

Was Samwell Tarly now seriously defending him? Was Samwell Tarly standing up to Jon Snow because Jon was too harsh on him? 

Theon cocked his head and he let his glance wander of the Tarly boy. 

“And no one ever got better at anything from public humiliation. I know that you and Theon knew each other before and I’m sure that he is much better with a sword than he shows, but maybe he’s nervous or not feeling well or still adapting to the cold? I mean, instead of just yelling at him you could just ask?” 

Jon seemed to think about all of it for a minute and then he turned around to face Theon with a much gentler attitude than a few minutes before. “Is everything alright, Theon?” 

Theon knew that he should say yes, that he should nod, that he should simply do better. That’s what a true soldier would do, that’s what Jon would do, that’s what Robb would do. But somehow the words of Sam echoed through the back of his mind and he looked around.

All the other men had stopped fighting. They were now staring at the trio. Their burning eyes were following every movement. Their curious eyes were listening in to every word. 

“I think, Jon, that we’re being watched.” Theon gestured at the gathering crowd around them and Jon let out a deep sigh. 

“Let's all take a short break. Drink something. Eat something. Sleep some. I’ll see you all back in two hours for another round of training.” He crossed his arms over his chest and waited until everyone understood that they were sent away, that they had to leave. 

One by one the men disappeared. They went to their rooms to sleep. They went to the kitchen to steal some bread. Or they went to the dining hall to have a drink or two. 

Eventually Jon, Sam and Theon were the only ones left. 

“Sorry…” Jon avoided Theon’s glance. “I didn’t mean to humiliate you.” 

“I know.” Theon quickly placed a hand on Jon’s shoulder. “You're just doing your job. You’re just trying to make sure we stay alive.” A grin spread across his face. “I didn’t know you cared this much about me.”

“Ow yes, he does.” Sam nodded firmly, only realizing that he had blurted something out he shouldn’t have blurted out when Jon looked over his shoulder again. “I mean, he mentioned it a few times.” Sam scratched the back of his neck. 

Jon narrowed his eyes and all of a sudden Theon wondered what was really going on between Jon and Sam. 

“When does he mention me?” Theon crossed his arms over his chest and Sam’s cheeks reddened. 

“O, just…during…” Sam stuttered and before he reached the end of those two words his entire face was blood red. “Sorry Jon…” He looked up at Jon. “He talks a lot about you when he dreams, you know.”

Theon raised his eyebrows and stared at Jon, at Sam and back at Jon. “And how do you know that he talks about me when he dreams?”

Jon rolled his eyes and Sam looked like he wished for a hole in the ground to disappear into. 

“O!” Theon dropped his jaw. “You two, the two of you, you two.” He didn’t really know what to say and strangely enough he didn’t really know what to feel either. He shouldn’t feel anything. But strangely enough he did. And strangely enough it felt a lot like jealousy. “O…” He stepped back and almost stumbled over his own feet, but Jon reached for his elbow and caught him before he could un-charmingly fall in the snow. He felt a shiver, one of those good ones, roll down his spine. “I'm happy for you. I am. I really am.” 

“If you say it one more time I for sure won’t believe it anymore.” Jon smiled and Theon felt his cheeks heating up. 

“So…” Theon smiled back at Jon. “If the two of you are a thing, then why are you dreaming about me?” 

“Actually…" Sam interrupted him. “You're one of the three people on his list he’s allowed to cheat on me with.” 

Jon rolled his eyes again and a chuckle escaped Theon’s lips. 

“Ow…” Sam scratched the back of his neck. “You're on my list too.” 

Theon’s chuckle became full blown laughter and it echoed all around them. 

It was a good thing that all the men were sent away, that no one could witness them. Although, maybe that was the nice thing about the Night’s Watch. They were all sinners here. They had all done things society didn’t like. This certainly wasn’t a bigger thing than anything any of the others had done.

But despite his laughter, the knowledge that both those people had put him on a really short list of people they could cheat with also filled him with a certain kind of warmth. He felt seen. He felt appreciated. He felt loved. He felt included. He felt welcomed.

“You really shouldn’t have said this, Sam.” Jon shook his head and stared at his feet. 

“No!” Theon shook his head as firmly and quickly as possible. “I'm glad you did! I really am, I’m…” He paused for a moment. “So, if the three of us…if we…you know…if we’d try…If I’d…” He shrugged. “Would it still be considered cheating then?”

Jon and Sam exchanged a glance. But the frown on Jon’s forehead loosened up a little and the lights in Sam’s eyes brightened. And then their lips curled up into full blown smiles. 

“We always meet at midnight in one of our rooms. Whoever sneaks in brings the ale and the playing cards.” Sam spoke quickly and he looked around to make sure no one had returned yet from their break. “It's my turn to sneak into Jon’s room tonight. You bring the ale. I’ll bring the playing cards.”

Theon nodded and his heart skipped a beat in his chest. A certain kind of joy spread through his body and he couldn’t remember the last time he had been looking forward to something this much. 

For the rest of the day he felt lighter and different. He wasn’t sure what it was, but all of a sudden his feet seemed to be constantly dancing and all of a sudden his sword seemed to be floating and soaring. 

“Excellent improvement, Greyjoy.” Jon nodded at him and Theon nodded back.

“Thank you, Snow.”


End file.
